A safe haven
by stfrench
Summary: Danny provides comfort to a distraught Nicole. Just a short story. Please review, Thanks!


**Title: **A safe haven

**Notes and thanks:** Just a small story. Your reviews would be really appreciated! Thanks.

Thanks to my Grenoble gang and colleagues and friends. Luv u, xx.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own anything related to CSI:NY. Only the character of Nicole is an original creation.

Nicole sighed heavily as she closed the folder that laid in front of her on the desk. Case closed. Her whole body ached, so did her mind. She felt physically and emotionally drained. She wasn't even sure that she would be able to stand up to go home. She sighed again. She always tried to maintain a safe and professional distance from the victims of every case she worked on but when a child was involved, Nicole found it almost impossible not to let her heart get involved. The pictures of the tortured and lifeless body of the little girl came flashing in her mind and she felt her eyes well up with tears.

"_Do not cry,"_ she urged herself silently. She considered herself strong and independent and she did not want to be perceived as weak. She rubbed her forehead with her fingertips in an effort to lift the fog of sadness that clouded her mind.

She lifted her eyes and looked at Aiden Burns who was sitting opposite her. Aiden's face was so expressive that Nicole could see that the young woman was wrestling with a turmoil similar to hers. Medical Examiner Sheldon Hawkes had called it one of the worst cases of child abuse he had ever seen. The child had been starved and it was obvious that she had suffered regular physical abuse, as an X-ray of the child's body had revealed some old fractures that had healed. Their investigation had been a quick but nonetheless painful process and they had found that the child's mother had committed the abuse. Although neighbours had raised concerns about the child's safety, the mother had managed to send Social Services off track, free to continue her daily abuse of the little girl. She had finally snapped one day and had thrown the little girl against a wall with such force, that the child had suffered internal injuries similar to those she would have sustained in a head-on car collision.

Aiden's voice brought her back to reality. "This kind of cases must be tough for you."

"This kind of cases are tough on anyone, Aiden."

"Yeah but…" Aiden hesitated before continuing. "You got a kid."

"I do…" Nicole's hazel eyes met Aiden's dark gaze and she shook her head. "It's beyond me how a mother could do this to her own child."

"Danny once said to me that the first thing he had learned on this job was that anybody could do anything to anyone."

Nicole bit her bottom lip and nodded.

Danny Messer had been looking at Nicole from his desk, she looked down and defeated. Danny was concerned for her.

"_Better keep an eye on her,"_ he thought. But whom was he kidding? He was always looking at her. He had done so from the moment she had walked into the station looking for Mac's office. She had been a part of their team for about seven months now and Danny had developed strong feelings for the young woman. He had worked with her on numerous cases and they had developed a strong bond fed by mutual respect, support but also attraction.

"They OK?" said a male voice behind him. Danny turned around to see Detective Don Flack standing next to him.

"No, they not. They look pretty beat."

"It was a tough case, but they did good."

Danny didn't reply as he saw Nicole stand up. Her deep purple suit was simple yet elegant. Nicole usually held herself with her head high and with a confidence that made it impossible to ignore her. But today, the hunch of her shoulders were testimony to her sombre state of mind. Nicole said a few more words to Aiden that Danny couldn't hear and made for the Locker Room.

"'Scuse me," he muttered to Don as he got up from his desk and followed Nicole.

Nicole needed to retrieve her handbag from her locker but could not find the strength to open the door. She rested her forehead against the cold metal of the door and closed her eyes. She heard footsteps approaching and she became aware of a presence behind her. With a great deal of effort, she turned around to face Danny Messer. Somehow, she wasn't surprised to see him here. She leaned against her locker and looked at Danny without a word. She could feel the tears she had fought back earlier on sting her eyes again, only this time she didn't feel tough enough to hold them back. She lowered her head as soon as she felt the first tear roll down her cheek. Danny held his hand out and caressed her hair gently. This tender movement broke Nicole's last resistance and although she tried to choke back the sobs that were rising to her throat, she knew it was in vain as she felt her whole body sag under the weight of her pain.

Danny quickly closed the space between them and circled her waist with his arms and pulled the young woman close to him. She threw her arms around his neck as sobs painfully ripped through her body. She could feel her legs almost giving way from under her but she knew that at this moment, Danny was here to support her, no matter what.

He slowly ran his hand up and down her back but he didn't say a word. He simply let her cry all the tears she had to cry.

And in Danny Messer's arms, Nicole realised that she had finally found the safe haven she had been craving for a long time.

The end.


End file.
